Ellis Park stalls filled to capacity

With the Churchill Downs backside closing for the summer, the stable areas at numerous other tracks and training centers are being filled to capacity, including at Ellis Park in western Kentucky, where stall vacancies have typically abounded, even during the live meet.

The 31-day summer meet will get under way Sunday with normal attendance guidelines resuming as the pandemic wanes and with Runhappy being the meet’s title sponsor for the second year. Purse levels are projected at an all-time high of about $350,000 per day, with Kentucky Downs granting $4.2 million in purse supplements through an arrangement of the Kentucky division of the Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association. Sixteen stakes are on tap, with Aug. 7, 8, and 15 being the biggest days. For offtrack viewers, the television signal is now available in high definition.

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The normal three-day schedule will run Friday to Sunday, with the only Thursday card of the meet being July 1 during the first week of racing. First post daily is 12:50 p.m. Central. The meet runs through Sept. 4, after which Kentucky Downs will hold its six-day meet (Sept. 5-12).